The present invention relates to cranberry seed oil, cranberry seed flour and to a method for making cranberry seed oil and cranberry seed flour and products comprising cranberry seed oil and cranberry seed flour.
American cranberries, Vaccinium macrocarpon, are native plants of open, acid peat bogs in North America. Cranberry plants are evergreen perennial vines that produce runners and upright branches with terminal flower buds.
Cranberries have historically been harvested and either ingested as whole berries, such as in cranberry sauce, or have been processed for their juice. Pulp remaining after cranberry juice extraction processing has historically been regarded as an undesirable waste product with little or no utility.
In the United States, cranberries are grown and are harvested in the Northeast, Northwest and Great Lakes regions. Cranberries ripen and are harvested in Autumn, which has made cranberries a holiday food. Cranberries have not changed significantly in appearance and nutritional value over time. Cranberries have typically been stored by freezing or drying the whole berries.
Cranberries have become a popular food only in recent years because cranberries have a very bitter taste. Historically, processors have not dealt well with the taste. Cranberries are known to contain quininic acid. It is the quininic acid that imparts to cranberries, the bitter taste. Cranberry juice has become more palatable because it is blended with other sugar-containing aqueous liquids.
Apart from an undesirable taste, quininic acid is believed to have nutraceutical properties. When ingested, quininic acid is converted to hippuric acid. Hippuric acid is believed to remove toxins from the bladder, kidneys, prostate and testicles.
In one product aspect, the present invention comprises a cranberry seed oil, the cranberry seed oil comprising oleic acid, linoleic acid, stearic acid, and alpha linolenic acid. In another product aspect, the present invention comprises products comprising the cranberry seed oil. The products comprise foods including foods for non-human animals, cosmetics, skin care products, sun screen, colorant agents, soap, hair care products, nutraceuticals such as antioxidants, and pharmaceuticals.
In its method aspect, the present invention comprises a method for making the cranberry seed oil. The method comprises cold pressing the oil from the seeds of cranberries.
In another method aspect, the present invention comprises a method for reducing waste products from cranberry juice processing. The method comprises providing cranberry pulp from a cranberry juice extraction process and extracting cranberry seed oil from the cranberry pulp. The seeds in the pulp are squeezed in a cold press at temperatures not exceeding about 100 degrees F. To obtain cranberry seed oil and cranberry seed flour, the solid residue product resulting from cranberry seed oil extraction is recovered from the cold press process and is dried.
In another method embodiment, the present invention comprises methods for making products comprising cranberry seed oil. The methods comprise blending the cranberry seed oil with other oils and non-oils materials such as soy, blueberry, pumpkin, aloe, sunflower, safflower, rose, saw palmetto, St John""s wort, evening primrose, corn, and flax.
In another product aspect, the present invention comprises a cranberry flour. The cranberry flour comprises protein in a concentration of about 25 to 30 percent by weight, and total insoluble fiber of about 43 to 50% by weight. The cranberry flour has a potassium concentration of about 550 to 600 mg/100 g of flour and a calcium concentration of about 146.1 mg/100 g of flour.
Another embodiment of the present invention comprises a method for treating burns. The method comprises providing a blend of cranberry oil and saw palmetto. The blend is applied to an area of burned skin.
One other product of the present invention comprises mixture of cranberry oil and cranberry flour.